1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates to dispensing caps for portable beverage containers.
2. Description of the Related Art
A beverage container such as a soft drink or juice bottle is typically accessed by means of a removable cap. Such caps are well known devices for providing an opening in the top of the bottle near the rim through which the contents of the bottle can flow. One obvious drawback to providing such an opening is the possibility of spilling the contents of the bottle because of carelessness or while transporting the bottle while walking or driving a car. Workers in the field attempted to solve this problem by developing portable beverage containers that included a projecting straw. The contents of typical soft drink or juice bottles were transferred into such containers having a projecting straw. Such containers are used in a variety of environments and situations to provide a convenient method for storing and consuming a liquid beverage. The usefulness of these containers particularly extends to bicyclists, hikers, joggers and others in the pursuit of recreational, athletic and other outdoor activities. There are several drawbacks to containers of this type: transferring the beverage from the container it was purchased in to a different container is time consuming, wasteful of the original container, and in the case of carbonated beverages, the transference expends carbonation which causes the beverage to "go flat" more quickly.
In the mid 1970's, the beverage bottling industry began responding to consumer demand for resealable beverage containers by including on its larger, multi-serving bottles a threaded terminal end with a resealable threaded cap. This design was so popular that the industry began using it on smaller, single-serving bottles as well. In the mid 1980's, when the bottling industry began making bottles out of both glass and plastic, it arrived at a standardized "screw cap" bottle opening which is currently used on both returnable and non-returnable beverage bottles of all sizes. This standardized opening is comprised of terminal ends with circular collars and standard threads made to fit a resealable threaded cap.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,167,354 to Cohanford attempts to overcome the need to transfer the beverage to a different container. Cohanford describes a cover which attaches directly to a conventional bottled beverage by means of a threaded cap which matches the bottle's original cap and may be screwed on in its place. Cohanford additionally includes a plastic sheath which matches the curvature of the bottleneck and provides a surface to which a carrying strap may be attached in a several ways. The Cohanfard patent is effective but has one major drawback: the design must be adapted to fit the various curvatures of different sizes and shapes of bottles. While the collar and thread size of the beverage bottles am independent of the shape and size of the bottle, the shape of the bottle neck varies widely. Thus, as Cohanfard teaches at column 6, lines 48-50, many different shapes and sizes of Cohanfard's cap would be needed to fit all the various sizes and shapes of bottled beverages even though they all have standard sized collars and threads.
Thus, a need remains for a new and improved dispensing cap which overcomes the obstacles encountered by workers in the field. Accordingly, it is the object of this invention to provide such a dispensing cap.